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Are You An Ultimate Shopper?

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Shopper

 

Is Amazon Prime Day like Black Friday to you?  You know how it is on Black Friday.  Many savvy shoppers – especially those who LOVE shopping – are armed with their lists, cell phones charged up, laptop ready in case of a cell phone failure, favorite beverage in hand and an alarm clock. Is this you?  You may want to plan on going to bed early the night before just to be at your very shopping-best. 

And no one had better get in your way. NO INTERRUPTIONS! The Ultimate Shopper is in her groove. Yes, shopping for some is like an Olympic sport.  First out of the chute wins!

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This blog contains Amazon affiliate links – lots of them! ♥ 

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When I think about it, I am kind of envious of all the excitement you will have. I am serious. Some gals, especially, tackle Prime Day as a challenge to be conquered!  I will be looking for great deals Tuesday and Wednesday  July 16 & 17, too, but I’ll bet you will be the winner!

SHOPPING TIP:     Know the calendar.  For gift buying, write birthdays and family events on a special calendar for this shopping purpose.   Reminder:  I don’t want you to get nervous or anything but Back to School is pretty much moments away and there are about 145-ish days till Thanksgiving’s  Black Friday on November 22nd!  So there is  a lot going on.  

STRATEGY: If the amount of shopping you have to do is overwhelming, only buy what you really are excited about this time and hold onto what can wait for November 22nd 145-ish days from now. It is important to get our heads around what may pay off …think of the reasons to buy before Prime Day begins.  I always look at what I am going to have to buy anyhow and try to do it on Prime Day.

Reasons to buy!

  • Anniversaries
  • Automotive Needs
  • Back to School
  • Beauty
  • Birthdays
  • Books
  • College Essentials
  • Health Essentials 
  • Holiday Giving
  • Home Décor refreshing
  • I Love You Gifts ♥
  • Kitchen
  • Lawn & Garden Supplies
  • Life’s Essentials (i.e. STUFF FOR YOU!) 
  • Office Supplies, Calendars, Planners
  • Party planning (stock up!!! )
  • Pet food and supplies
  • Showers – baby
  • Showers – wedding
  • Sporting Goods
  • Teacher Gifts
  • Toys
  • Weddings

 

CLICK HERE FOR AMAZON SEARCH! ☑️ Super Quick Access!

 

“SECRET” SHOPPING TIP:  Amazon is running some really GREAT SALES even now!  Often you will find highly customer-recommended items for 25 – 40% off!  

 

Teachers, Buy Yourself a Gift!  

Women's teacher t shirt

Cute Teacher Pencil Coquette Bow Back To School Teacher Life T-Shirt

I bought this cute t-shirt for myself and it comes today.  Can’t wait!!! 

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Skechers hands free summit dazzling haze sneakers best sellers

Skechers Women’s Hands Free Summits Dazzling Haze

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2 German shepherd dogs

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Is Pet Hair around the house driving you crazy???

 

I’ve been there.  Read about the BEST pet hair vacuum I’ve ever had or just go over and get one right now!  Hint:  it’s a Shark Navigator!

 

 

Shark vacuum cleaner
I would like to personally apologize to CAT OWNERS everywhere.   I have always had dogs for pets.  My quest for a great PET HAIR vacuum burst forth from sheer frustration from the abundance of white dog fur from my Yellow Labs Blondie, Lexi, Troy and Sadie.   I could have BUILT A NEW DOG out of all that shed fur. 

 

Little did I know that the CAT PARENTS OF THE WORLD also have a big pet-hair challenge on their hands.   I assure you that the  Shark navigator upright vacuums will also be YOUR dream come true!

beautiful cat

Best Cat Hair Vacuum Ever!

 

Ultimate Shopper

 

Enjoy!

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Great Coffee – Save Time & Money, Enjoying Great Coffee All Day Long

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coffee, coffee lover, gift ideas

Coffee lovers: don’t you just love a great cup of coffee? Hot? Flavorful? Robust with aroma?

This blog contains affiliate links. ♥

Coffee lovers: don’t you just hate the rest? Tepid. Tasteless. BURNT!
It’s no wonder that so many have opted for spending big bucks at the drive-up window.  Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts, Tim Horton’s…even McDonald’s is preferred over homemade.
Please forgive me for bursting your bubble but the drive-up isn’t nearly the time-saver you may think it to be. It definitely is a money maker — for Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts, Tim Horton’s and McDonald’s! It’s a money sapper for you and for me. Time and money lost.
Quality decision: thinking frugally, let’s first put our favorite Carmel Macchiato into the “very special purchase” category. We will only buy it “once-in-a-while”.
But we MUST have COFFEE! 
A GREAT cup of coffee, every time.
I totally agree.
The dilemma: to save a fortune, I had already accepted that I was going to make the coffee myself but I was finding that I was making partial pots 3-5 times per day. This was the case when I worked in an office full-time and now as I write freelance at home. Why so often? It went bad all too soon. The heating element underneath the pot would do damage on the flavor. Given enough time, it smelled burnt and tasted bitter. Forget that! So, again and again I would make fresh.
But that wastes coffee, costing more money.
And, it takes more time.
Then I received a gift. A wonderful gift from my sister-in-law: a coffee maker that pours the freshly brewed coffee into a carafe! The coffee stays hot without constant heating. The “burning” stopped. Took me a little while to realize that I no longer had to make new pots again and again all day.
How To Save Time & Money and have GREAT COFFEE All Day Long.
Even if your coffee maker doesn’t have it’s own carafe, you can do this. 
It will save TIME and MONEY and you’ll have great coffee all day long!
 
Here’s how:
  • The Carafe: get an insulated carafe that keeps liquids hot.
  • Keep it Clean:  clean your coffee maker. Can’t get good coffee out of one that is dirty.
  • Throw ’em out! Establish the habit of discarding the coffee grounds and filter soon as it’s brewed. That way no latent drippings (bitter)  will be added to  your coffee as the day goes on.
  • Use filtered water. Brita water pitchers are very affordable – under $30 and as low as $12. They are well worth the investment for coffee making as well as providing good tasting water for your family.
  • Brew the coffee and then pour it into your preheated, clean carafe. Keeping your carafe clean and preheating it first with hot water will help keep your coffee tasting good all day long. (see “heat your cup”)
  • Heat your cup. When serving, preheat your coffee cup so that the coffee stays hot longer, just like you did with the carafe. Simply put very hot water in your cup and let it sit for a minute. Pour out the water, pour in the delicious hot coffee and enjoy!
  • Microwave. Late in the day, you may find that you will need to stoke up the heat a little bit. Preheat your cup, pour your coffee and then “nuke” it for 30 seconds. It will taste wonderful.

 

coffee lover, how to make great coffee at home

 

Got any coffee making tips to share?

How do you do it?

Enjoy!